Women Play Guitar! - New WEB site and Club

This site is new with more coming soon!
(you'll notice the tabs above don't lead anywhere yet)
See contact information in the footer below and feel free to send us any concert notices,
photos, press, information you would like published here about women who play guitar.

James Baldwin on Rosetta Tharpe

James Baldwin references Sister Rosetta Tharpe (right column, or below if you are on mobile)
in one of his essays, Journey to Atlanta. In this essay, from book Notes of a Native Son, 1955, Baldwin tells
the story that happened to The Melodeers, a group of jazz singers (Baldwin had a brother who was a member)
employed by the Progressive Party to sing in Southern Churches. However, once in Atlanta, Georgia, they
were used for canvassing until they refused to sing at all and were returned to their hometown.

"Harlem is filled with churches and on Sundays it gives the impression of being filled with music. Quartets such as
my brothers' travel from church to church in the fashion of circuit preachers, singing as much for the love of singing and the
need for practice as for the rather indifferent sums collected for them which are then divided. These quartets
have "battles of song," the winning team adding, of course, immensely to its prestige, the most consistent winners
being the giants in this field. The aim of all these quartets, of ourse, is to branch out, to hit the big
time and sing for a livelihood. The Golden Gate Quartet, judging at least from its music, had its
roots here, and out of such a background came
Sister Rosetta Tharpe, whom I heard not quite ten years ago, plunking a guitar in a store front church on Fifth Avenue."

Women Play Guitar! - Martha Masters played Guitar Nights - Pasadena CA, at Conservatory of Music

Martha Masters, classical guitarist, to play
Martha Masters is active as a solo recitalist, as a chamber musician, and as a soloist with
orchestras. Recent concert seasons have included performances on concert series and at
festivals in China, England, Denmark, Spain, Poland, Germany, Paraguay, Peru, Puerto Rico,
Canada, Mexico, and throughout the United States.
Martha Masters website

Above: Muriel Anderson plays a Morris Guitar

Muriel performed recently to mesmerized audiences at Boulevard Music in Culver City, CA
and at the Gelencer House Concert in Claremont. Review soon.
For her complete concert schedule and reservation information,
click here. visit Muriel's website

Discovered Online

Sister Rosetta Tharpe. The Godmother of Rock N Roll!

Rosetta Tharpe plays 'Didn't It Rain'. Recorded in Manchester, England in 1964.

Ana Vidovic is an extraordinary talent with formidable gifts taking her
place amongst the elite musicians of the world today.

Ms. Vidovic has given over one thousand
public performances since first taking the stage in 1988.

Her international performance career
includes recitals in New York, London, Paris, Vienna, Salzburg, Rome, Budapest, Warsaw, Tel Aviv,
Oslo, Copenhagen, Toronto, Baltimore, San Francisco, Houston, Austin, Dallas, St. Louis and beyond.
Mel Bay Publications released Ana Vidovic's most recent DVD in 2009 entitled "Guitar Artistry
in Concert," a journey through the music of Torroba, Piazzolla and Pierre Bensusan, Sergio Assad,
Stanley Myers, Villa-Lobos and Agustin Barrios Mangoré. "Guitar Virtuoso," Ana's performance of
works by Bach, Torroba, Paganini and Walton, was released on DVD by the Mel Bay label in 2006.
visit Ana's website

Members Recommend

Tucki Bailey, composer and saxophonist, recommends we take a listen to Joyce
Cooling. Tucki's message: "Go Sis! I so admire you for doing this! Look up Joyce Cooling. Jazz guitarist,
never got her due respects."

Joyce Cooling is an American jazz guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter based
in San Francisco.

Cooling has recorded seven albums - five of which charted on Billboard magazine. She has to her
credit two No. 1 singles, six Top-10 and 13 charting radio singles in all and has garnered multiple
music awards including the Gibson Best Jazz Guitarist of the Year and Best New Talent in the
Jazziz Reader’s Poll.[1] She was a nominee for the California Music Awards, the Oasis Awards,
and the Gavin Contemporary Jazz Artist of the Year.Cooling has performed with Joe Henderson,
Stan Getz, Mark Murphy, Al Jarreau, and Charlie Byrd among other luminaries. The Christmas Song,
with Lee Ritenour, and her original single, It’s Feeling Like Christmas, complete her discography.
visit Joyce's website

Women Play Guitar Videos

Tina S, France, 2013, Vivaldi Tribute

Barbara Lynn - Green Bay 2005

Membership in Women Play Guitar:

Participate more fully! This is not a formal membership at this point anyway (maybe we will later!), but please feel free
to send me any information about women guitarists (you, or someone you know of) that we could post here.
Concert dates, players, photos
bios, comments, articles, essays, poems, video links . . .
Contact Terry Bailey for more information or with any questions

Above: Terry Bailey, founder Women Play Guitar.

Women Play Guitar Website at womenplayguitar.com

Women Play Guitar Website is designed and maintained by Terry Bailey, owner
of mediabench.com / Mediabench, a digital media publisher and web design firm.
Please address any comments or questions about the web site
to terry@mediabench.com

Above: Sharon Isbin

Sharon Isbin received a 2010 GRAMMY AWARD for ‘Best Instrumental Soloist Performance (without orchestra)’
for her CD Journey to the New World (Sony). She is the first guitarist in 43 years to receive a 2nd classical Grammy,
and the only classical artist to perform in the 52nd Annual Awards. Born in Minneapolis, Sharon Isbin began her guitar
studies at age nine in Italy, and later studied with Andrès Segovia and Oscar Ghiglia. She founded and is director
of the Julliard School of Music Guitar Department. visit Sharon's website